Mobile

BlackBerry Supports Bluetooth Smart Ready

By Adrian Bridgwater, July 31, 2013

BlackBerry 10 platform developer opportunities further expanded

BlackBerry continues its charge to reposition itself on the slippery surface of the smartphone landscape with news that it has worked with the Bluetooth SIG (special interest group) to jointly announce native support in BlackBerry 10 for Bluetooth Smart Ready.

Developers can now incorporate Bluetooth Smart functionality into their BlackBerry 10 applications. Android and Apple have also previously completed support process for Bluetooth Smart. Since the introduction of the iPhone 4s in 2011, Apple methodically turned almost every one of their devices into Bluetooth Smart Ready hubs.

Suke Jawanda, chief marketing officer of the Bluetooth Special Interest Group, suggests that BlackBerry 10 apps with Bluetooth functionality are creating new opportunities for developers in sectors such as fitness, healthcare, and automotive.

For example, applications can track a cyclist's performance on their BlackBerry 10 smartphone using speed and cadence sensors on their bikes, fitness enthusiasts can capture heart rate data from training sessions to compare performance, and sensors can even help drivers locate a lost set of keys.

According to the Bluetooth Special Interest Group, "BlackBerry provides a broad range of support for various Bluetooth profiles in BlackBerry 10, with a secure set of APIs in the Native Development Kit (NDK). BlackBerry 10 implements AES-CCM cryptography and privacy features to ensure a customer's data is kept safe and secure while their smartphone is polling or connected to a Bluetooth Smart device."

Bluetooth Smart enables devices to communicate with one another through short, highly efficient data transfers, with low power requirements that help preserve the battery life of both the smartphone and the Bluetooth Smart device.

Using the Bluetooth 4.0 specification and GATT-based architecture, Bluetooth Smart Ready devices can link with BlackBerry 10 smartphones. This offers developers a framework to create graphical user interfaces for a wide range of data-gathering sensors.

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